The Volunteer State Flirts with Replacing Liberty with Preventative Detention

As cashless bail and soft on crime policies around the country have created lawlessness in many of our communities, the natural reaction by many states has been to go too far in the other direction. Instead of letting everyone out of jail, states are now looking to lock everybody up. Tennessee might be falling into that trap. Tennessee's proposed constitutional amendment, SJR25, represents a significant bail reform effort that could fundamentally alter pretrial release practices by introducing a broader system of preventative detention. For over 200 years, the state's constitution has guaranteed bail for all except capital cases, emphasizing the presumption of innocence and liberty. However, SJR25 would expand preventative detention to include any offense requiring convicts to serve at least 85% of their sentence, such as terrorism or aggravated rape, while creating a catch-all category that empowers prosecutors through charging decisions. This shift ties pretrial release eligibility to evolving sentencing laws, allowing future legislatures to broaden non-bailable offenses without voter approval, marking a departure from Tennessee's traditional bail reform principles that focus on accountability rather than predictive detention.

In a recent article on the Bail Brief site from Sr. Vice President, Advocacy and Distribution for Universal Bail, Chris Blaylock, writes that adopting preventative detention under this bail reform could lead to increased pretrial detention rates, overcrowded jails, and higher costs for counties.  All of which were seen in the federal and New Jersey systems where detention motions surged, and jail populations grew without proven public safety benefits. Tennessee already has robust tools for managing pretrial release, including bail conditions, no-contact orders, and revocation for violations, making the amendment an unnecessary expansion of preventative detention. Instead of narrowing constitutional protections, targeted statutory changes could address safety concerns more effectively, avoiding the financial burdens and inefficiencies associated with widespread preventative detention in bail reform.  Below is an excerpt from Mr. Blaylock’s article as well as a link to the full article.

Before Tennessee Rewrites Its Constitution on Bail
by Chris Blaylock

For more than 200 years, the Tennessee Constitution has guaranteed a simple principle: people are bailable except in capital cases. That protection has existed since Tennessee’s first constitution in 1796 and reflects a core American belief about liberty and the presumption of innocence. Few constitutional provisions have remained unchanged as long as Tennessee’s bail clause.  READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE>>>